By: Trokon Wrepue – trokon1992seokin@gmail.com
MONROVIA – The National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL) says it has launched a full-scale technical investigation into a reported hydrocarbon seep discovered in Nevren Tan, Beon Town, Grand Bassa County.
The site lies within the Roberts–Bassa Basin, about 7.6 miles inland from the coastline.
In a statement, the corporation said it immediately dispatched two technical field missions to the area after receiving reports of the seep. “The missions conducted seep reconnaissance, surface geology assessments, and baseline data collection,” NOCAL said in a statement on Facebook.
NOCAL noted that the area has previously drawn geological interest. According to NOCAL, historical airborne gravity and magnetic surveys conducted in 2010 by Simba Energy—the only licensed onshore reconnaissance operator at the time—had identified potential oil seep occurrences, suggesting the basin may hold commercially viable hydrocarbons.
Building on those earlier findings, NOCAL’s geoscientists, working alongside technicians from the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC), carried out two days of intensive field observations, reviewed historical datasets, collected soil samples, and performed geological mapping.
Preliminary field assessments indicate that the reported seep in Nevren Tan aligns with known structural and stratigraphic features of the Roberts–Bassa Basin.
Samples taken from the site are now undergoing detailed laboratory geochemical analysis. Tests include API gravity determination to classify the fluid as sweet or sour, biomarker profiling, and other diagnostic procedures aimed at identifying the fluid type, source characteristics, and possible migration pathways.
NOCAL emphasized that final conclusions will only be issued after laboratory results and field data have been fully analyzed and integrated.
Given the strong public interest surrounding the discovery, the corporation urged government institutions, the media, community leaders, and public figures to avoid sharing unverified or speculative information.
Premature conclusions, it warned, could undermine the scientific process and the credibility of the results.
NOCAL assured the public of its commitment to transparency and said a comprehensive, evidence-based update will be provided once the technical assessments are complete.
